Tatem Criner-MODI Blog

  My methods for the exploration into my question “How do architectural descriptions of fictional buildings get adapted into visualizations for film?” involve many methods of exploration into the topic. The overall process will take place in two parts. The first process will be an examination of the actual process of translating a literary medium into a visual one. This will be through literary review of case studies of specific movies that have been adapted from previous literary iterations. Of these case studies they will be Maze Runner, Dune, and Lord of the Rings as previously explained in the project background. I will gather this information from recorded interviews with their production designers and filmmakers. I will read the books to find architectural descriptions of the buildings as seen in the movies. I will compare their characteristics with their described feel in contribution to the plot, story, and themes. Through these, I will be able to deduce the reasons the bui...

  The making and imagining of film is a laborious process facilitated by directors, set designers, cinematographers, gaffers, make-up department, digital artists, etc. But before any creative outcome bears fruit there must first be an idea. Creation cannot exist without inspiration. A film has a source material that inspires it. Sometimes there is an original idea that starts out being adapted into a theatrical medium, however, this is rare given the relative youth of filmmaking as an artform. Art inspires art and many of the most creative endeavors (especially film) rely on precedents to draw inspiration. Literature, the written word, compositions, texts have been the official way to record information and tell stories for thousands of years and are still in use in our modern society. What is literature at its most basic level if not simply communication? All of literature is art through written communication. So how does an idea from one medium get translated into another? In the...

 This past week I have narrowed my focus and created my final question. HOW DOES ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTIONS OF FICTIONAL BUILDINGS GET ADAPTED INTO VISUALIZATIONS FOR FILM? There are many new developments that I have developed when it comes to my methods. During my review in front of the honors committee Jinoh mentioned that part of my methods should involve artificial intelligence and how I can take the words that I get and create visualizations for fictional buildings. In addition to doing this I will create a visualization of an unadapted literary source and develop my own visualization through 3D modeling software. Developing a good visualization will be necessary to contributing to how the accuracy and the results of my investigative process.  My sources that I have gathered so far have talked about how production designers have created visualizations based on modern architectural practices as well as descriptions from the book. Many of the buildings in the movies ar...